AMIRA and ALEXA Mini capture Kanye live

To unveil Kanye West’s YEEZY Season 3 fashion collection, the artist combined the show with the premiere of his new album “The Life of Pablo” in a live broadcast from sold-out Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Moving Image & Content (MIC) was tapped to execute the sensational event that would be streamed to over 750 cinema screens in 26 countries as well as online. Director Mark Ritchie of Southpaw Productions opted for a cinematic look for the unique fashion event and art performance. Director of photography Rick Siegel captured it all on 10 AMIRAs and 4 ALEXA Minis.

The cameras, which were supplied by AbelCine NY, included a mix of Steadicam and handheld rigs (Minis), tripods, dollies, Tower Cams, and Technocranes (AMIRAs). Ritchie notes, “The AMIRA and Mini are such solid cameras. We easily rigged them onto all the different platforms. It’s nice because the accessories are standardized. There are no surprises. I like to stay in the creative world, but I can get hung up when the technical world gets in my way. That doesn’t happen with ARRI cameras. It saves time, energy and triage during the day.”

I’m very proud to say I’ve pushed the entire creative and technical workflow to 14 ARRI AMIRAs and ALEXA Minis. It’s been a long time waiting, but ARRI has finally filled the gap for storytellers that work in the live environment who still want to offer a truly cinematic experience to their viewers.Mark A. Ritchie